My Painless Flame
by Tameashi
Summary: Itanaru, Mpreg, Onesided Sasunaru, SakuSasu. Sometimes we just wish that loving didn't hurt so goddamn much. I'm not going to Dragon Ball Z it. Believe it.
1. Prologue

Sasuke-18

Naruto-17

Sakura-18

Itachi-23

Kyuubi (boy)

**Disclaimer: Naruto no own-ed by me. Why would you ever think that... Stupid... In a nice way!!!**

**Warning: I write confusingly, I hope you understand what's going on... I suppose also mature themes? I don't know... Yaoi/Shounen ai, Though it's classified as M for mature, the rating is probably lower. I would just rather be safe than sorry...

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Prologue

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_Love is like fire. It's beautiful; you want to touch it, to feel it, to have it for your own but once you do you wish you never had, yet each time you are drawn, again and again, like a moth to it's doom and perhaps one day we'll find a fire that wont hurt quite as much, but for now we wait and live with this warming pain.

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**Naruto Point Of View**

Standing, here, with dusk pulling the fighting sun down below the horizon; with rays of sunlight stretching from behind me, grasping on every face of every object in reach, I begin to think, to understand, what went wrong, what I missed, what has to be done...

The cream colored paint of the house glows as shadows sluggishly creep toward me, trying to pull me forward into everything any normal person would want to avoid. In front of an oak door that leads to my house-- no, _his _house, _her_ house-- it's no longer mine.

I shiver, the air thickly emits the feelings of freshly brewing war, whether it be from me, or from them. I wish I could forget, blissfully standing on the sidelines, watching some luminescent butterfly fluttering and oblivious... completely oblivious, a dream.

There, a half step forward in the shade cast by the porch-cover I place a limp hand onto the cool metal of the door knob. Strange, how something so small; an incident so unnoticeable can be strangely missed when absent for so long. Or so I imagine.

It's rather bittersweet, looking at the place I love-- loved-- though soon we will part, it's inevitable, and calm all feelings that have yet to come with deep uneven breathes and sad longing sighs, or is that only me? I wonder why I have to leave such a place of warmth to begin with but curse my stupidity, for I know, an have known for quite some time, the answer. And alas, a thought, I do think, with my hand on this door, with my home of warmth, with my life, or what it once was, in front of me: what is cold but a lack of warmth? How could _I_ know what warmth (opposed to cold) is when I have lived for so long in absolute zero, for from where I came, hell as you call it, burns flames of not heat (for you were mistaken) but frost much colder than death will ever feel, and much more painful as loneliness cannot be shared, I learned. A demon of hell is what I am, and that I know is true, yet I still will miss what I know as heat, love (a human emotion is it not?)

Muscles in my hand and forearm contract as I turn the knob and I note that the door needs new paint, while I stand there resilient to enter. I step in with my worn ninja boots and open the door wider as to extend my view, which uncovers a pair of foreign shoes. I feel the tingling sensation of tears and I slant my face upward as to stop the flowing. I never noticed the ceiling was so very... white... and chipped? I wonder how long ago these buildings were painted. I mean first the exterior, then the door, now the ceiling? Did ceiling paint even chip? Perhaps my eyes deceive me... as so many others have. A shake of the head, to disrupt my sorrowful musings, will I really miss this place? Of course. But not so much to shed tears.

Those shoes... aren't so foreign these days...

Disregarding those sandals, going on only to let the darkness engulf me as I fully enter. I gently let the door squeak closed behind me. There is no sign of life. Glooming walls hang forward, towering, haunting... mocking.

Odd that this house had never seemed quite so alien as it did now.

Striding passed the staircase and making my way into the kitchen, which also is void of movement, didn't really help in this exciting expedition now though I memorize the counter of marble, the cabinets of wood, the sink, the medium-sized table accompanied by four alike chairs; farewell.

Retracing my steps I, again, pass the stairs into the living room to find all life missing. I really don't know why I bother the rooms when it was easy to ignore them from the corridor, but none the less I did. My eyes raked the room, despite the already known layout, landing on a framed picture of me... and him. Both profiles looked happy, and I could do nothing this time for the tears that most certainly will fall. How pathetic I have become, to cry!

I turned and ran from the undefinable memories of the picture, from my weakness, into the dark and dreary hall, standing directly at the bottom of the stairs I so desperately didn't want to climb. It was _comforting_ to know that after today my life like that, smiling with him, will be over for the most part. People change after long periods of time, or have already changed in this case. Perhaps, maybe, I'm just being emotional, dramatic?... But I loved each drop of time spent with him, only I, and now to see it fluttering away-- that is a lie, it has already gone...

Tears crawled down my face leaving a quick drying trail, like two slugs leaving residue. This horrid mocking sticky feeling, how shameful, I'm now taunting myself... Covering my hands with my fleece sleeves and placing them on the source of the tears I squashed the slugs, for the lack of better words, and sat there for, god only knows how long, hiccuping ever so often, only to be left with tear stained sleeves in the end. What have I become... to cry so openly... You'd think I would have learned...

Eventually I got up letting a breath dissipate into the silence and looked at the opposing wall only to see the hanging pictures slanted in every direction. And I knew why, I've always known, but I love him no less.

_Or maybe you didn't love him to begin with; there is no less of love._

Lifting my leg, I placed a foot on the lowest step while easing on my weight as to stop it from creaking because frankly quieter noises sound louder when one is trying to be quite. Then I repeated the process with the next step and the next and the next. As I reached my destination, the top of the stairs, I came to realize that we have sixteen steps on our staircase and as amazing as my epiphany was muffled noises reached my ears to pull me from my strangeness.

My steps, surprisingly, didn't falter and my head held up high, though I knew somewhere deep down that my head was actually lower than before, I strode forward to prove to every one of my doubts that there was no pain in my breast, that there was no breaking and my heart, that was thumping much to fast for this normal occurrence, was completely normal.

Pretending was my forte.

Firmly I grasped the handle, twisted the knob, knowing no one would notice, and pushed the door open to expose what I knew was there. And now here I stand, in all my glory, like a voyeur, watching their embarrassing performance. My eyes and my head turn quickly to my left, to the dresser specifically, avoiding the awkward scene. Red tints my tan cheeks, I know from the extensive blood flow, and as I stand here with my rapidly reddening countenance, I wonder why I am. He wouldn't be happy to know I was there, I don't like it when he's not happy. The pain in my chest wakes my from my trance, though I wonder why it's there in the first place (what does it mean? He's happy so I should too, right?) and in an embarrassed frenzy I scurry over to the dresser I was previously staring at. Grabbing the necessary clothes and bathroom materials I hurry to the closet to grab a back pack.

The blush that washes my face has yet to cease while I walk more calmly than before to the desk across the room. There is no need to hide my Chakra (though right now I lack any to hide) or tip-toe around like a burglar of some sort, I know this from experience. At first I would be careful, I'm not suppose to know, but soon I found that they are completely oblivious to everything during these certain... times. I suppose I'm not one to talk, though. At my arrival I snatched a pen and paper to gracefully write my short goodbye to my love. Along with that I write how long I'll be gone, a year and a half for training, without disclosing my residence in the Hidden Village of Grass, and that I'll miss him, because I will. I love him so much, so very much. Signing my name and again repeating my love for him, I hopes that it will change anything, I place the strap of my bag on my shoulder and leave the room, closing the door behind me. Walking out of the village, I can't very well jump through the trees with no Chakra, I realize that my heart has yet to cease it's pain, though I am smiling (usually smiling at least numbs the hurt,) and faintly, as I bid a silent farewell to my love, Sasuke, and my friend, the other, the one on my bed with my love, Sakura, I wonder why my heart has to hurt so very much.

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**Narrator POV**

White washed walls reluctantly witnessed each moan, each pant, each creak of the bed, each thrusting sin. Such a shameful act to observe; if they had been bestowed eyes, said eyes would avert from such a disgraceful scene.

Their white eyes watched as the movements slowed, as the room quieted, as the "passion," lust, left both performers, leaving one to bask in guilt, and the other in false hope. Both persons lay there for a few minutes before standing, in sync, and proceeded to cloth their naked bodies; a routine fashion. The head topped with duck-butt-like hair glanced over at the clock, which he recognized to display nine o' clock, before focusing back on the pink haired girl, his partner in crime.

"You should leave, Naruto will be back soon," All was said in a monotone voice, demonstrating no emotions, no feelings, no love.

An un-lady-like snort escaped her gently shaped nose as her heart clouded over her judgment, fogging over the truth and painting a nicer picture. Because who would rather have the cold, stony, unattractive truth when a cloud-like fantasy was close enough to forge?

"We have to tell him sometime, you know, and he's so stupid he wouldn't find out even if we were still here, undressed, in the bed," she placed a hand on her hip, giving a snotty smirk "Naruto wouldn't know you loved me even if you told him straight out. He's that stupid." the pink strands of hair swinging as she flipped them with her unoccupied hand. Then strutted over to the door over swaying her hips in the process. "Call me next time you can get that idiot out of the house." she turned 180 degrees to face her love and winked while blowing a kiss after saying: "Kay, bye!" and took her leave.

"Hn." was the only answer Sasuke gave before resuming to dress himself, before stopping, deciding it would be better to shower and dress in clean clothes.

He didn't need the guilt so close to him.

Stepping into the porcelain tiled bathroom, he turned on the warm water and stripped from his recently used attire. A sigh slipped from his mouth as he lowered his naked self into the filled tub and turned the water off.

The warmth of the water encompassed his body, heating every part exposed to the soothing liquid. Small waves that splashed at the walls of the tub soon calmed settling into a expansive clear blanket surrounding every limb that disfigured the flat terrain. Dark eyes gazed past the liquid domain, not giving it a second glance, at the white tiled wall towering over him. His perfect brow creased, his worshiped eyes narrowing slightly as thoughts whirled their way through his mind like an awkward blend of colors.

Silence stretched limitlessly as time seemed to fly by, as his thoughts had done sometime long ago. Snapping out of his zombie-like daze, he turned to grab a bottle contain shampoo and squeezed, there emerged a blob of pink goo onto his open hand, which too much reminded him of another pink glob and in a desperate attempt to rid himself of the girl he turned the soap into foam in a few vicious rubs in between his hands.

He couldn't help the strange pull at his chest, his heart, when his thoughts turned to such undesirable topics. Her pink hair, her green eyes, every aspect of her, whether it was physical or a trait of personality, disgusted him to no end. So a common question that floated through his thoughts was why? Vague, yes, but true. Why had he broken his own heart? Why had he let his life take such an unsatisfactory turn? Why had he betrayed his... boyfriend (because that's all he was?) His answer was simple:

It had to be done. And again voices in his head spoke, echoing the question, why, begging for a reason, begging to know what had driven him to such insanity. Initially his answer came out as "I need to restore my clan." as it was a plausible excuse, though he knew, somewhere deep inside himself, that answer was a lie.

It was true he wanted children, though he couldn't really stand them, but that statement was nothing more than a diversion, if one were needed, his true reason being as pathetic as it is. "To run away?" Admitting that would prove truth to everything he had ever tried to deny; that one statement his brother had said, the one that haunted him since the words echoed in his ears, would be correct and that was something he couldn't handle.

Never would he let himself be weak, or admit it anyways.

Downcast dark eyes glazed over watching the water drain as he lathered his hair and rinsed the suds away with the nozzle of the shower head. For awhile he left the spray going, liking the warm feeling of the water rushing down his body only to wash down the now open drain, but soon became bored with the unproductive activity.

Leaning forward Sasuke turned the water off then spun to the towel rack snatching a towel to dry himself before producing new clothes. He stepped out of the bathroom, wrapped the towel around his waist after drying himself, looked toward the door, and found something amiss. Creeping down the stairs his noticed there was no noise coming from the kitchen, nor light, nor Uzumaki Naruto making any sort of food. Looking at the oven clock he turned away feeling a deep sense of anxiety in the pit of him stomach.

The same anxiety a child would feel sneaking a cookie. Because isn't that basically what he was doing, sneaking?

"Nine fifty three," he breathed out. "Nine fifty three, it's only Nine fifty three. He should be home by at least ten o' clock, no need to worry," and a sudden suck in of breath. '_Worried? Why would I be worried? He doesn't even suspect..._' Shaking his head, he set all thoughts of a blond to the side and made his way up the, now known, sixteen stairs. Gracefully walking through the bedroom doorway he progressed to the closet to attain an outfit. He reached for the handle and slid the door to the right.

Inky eyes narrowed as they scanned the closet contents again and again soon coming to the realization a large portion of orange attire was gone (the term large being relative to the original amount, which wasn't much... just so you know.) Panic shook the body, wondering, hoping so desperately for... what? He didn't know. What was there to fear? He had no attachment to the blond, he was just another face, another bump in the road... another lay. A scowl jerked onto his pale demeanor at the strange betrayal he felt to think those words.

The thoughts of worry and panic were forced from his head as he began choosing a new set of clothes and applying them as they should. From the forced calm state he turned to look for any sign left by Naruto, anything that would permanently calm his nerves. Across the room from closet door he spotted on the far desk a paper with a short, happy looking note scrawled upon it. Few steps were taken to get across the room and a hand dove to grasp it's prey in it's deadly fingers. His dark eyes read with a sort of rush that didn't seem normal:

"_Hey Sasuke,_

_I suppose you are done with your shower, since you are reading this. I'm sorry I couldn't bid good-bye in person but I had to leave for my training mission I received today. I'll be gone for a year and a half, I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner, I didn't know until today; I was surprised I wasn't warned earlier, but that's just how it is, I'm sorry. I can't keep in contact, nor can I give you where I will be. Confidential. I'm sorry I'll be gone so long on such short notice, but I'll see you when I get back. I love you muchly._

_-Love Naruto"_

(AN: Sorry I suck at writing letters... Forgive me?)

"Stupid," the word was airy and followed only by an empty silence which seemed to amplify the quiet voice to no limit. The beating of his heart had slowed considerably, though the reason for the irregularity was still unknown.

Wandering about the room, from each side to the other and back, he was able to calm the rest of his nerves and proceed to the western style bed. Shadows had crept, cast by the luminescent moon, to his recumbent form, crawling about his body before engulfing him completely. Pulling their way across the sky the clouds brought upon more darkness, whether it be comforting or ominous, it devoured the land, the house, the body that lay awake, thinking.

Many times passing thoughts creep to ones mind when laying there waiting for unconsciousness to take over and in this insistence things happened that way. As dark eyelids fell a thought in his mind had appeared, though he probably wouldn't fully forget it later, _a training mission confidential?_


	2. Ch 1:The Story Begins

**Disclaimer: Naruto es not mine. Story is... sorry if the plot isn't very original, but it kind of is... But I wrote this all so, applaud... doooo iiit and sorry if Naruto is out of character (OOC) I can't make him seem act correctly... Lawl tell me if you see mistakes, I didn't proof-read... it's too long

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Chapter 1

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"Hey kid, you got your papers?" A small wash of shock filtered upon his tan profile. It wasn't so much the question itself, considering the recent irritation between some of the hidden villages, but the fact that this was the Hidden Village of Grass. Being such a small village it was often overlooked as a threat but it was usually caught in the crossfire if there was war between the larger villages. And in retrospect being small as a reason would suffice (as a reason,) being as it would be beneficial to any other waring village as a secondary base, closer to enemy territory.

"Well?" The other guard asked, giving the blond a stern, irritated look. Both men sat at a booth near the gate watching him carefully. One was topped with side-swept brown hair with a friendly smile slapped upon his pale skin and his green eyes sparkling, he had been the first man to speak. The other had longer, straighter dark brown, nearly black, shoulder length hair and a serious frown graced his tan creamy skin to go along with his stern brown eyes, he was the second to speak.

A jolt of awareness shook through Naruto's body as he escaped his thoughts. "Hehe, sorry..." He trailed off as a hand went to scratch the back of his head while his face displayed a cute blush and wry smile from embarrassment. "I have them right here," Reaching into his pack to deliver the parchment.

The light brunette leaned forward to receive the papers as the dark haired man began studying the blond. His eyes trailed over the simple outfit, a pale orange shirt with a red swirl on the front accompanied by a plain pair of cream shorts, trying to determine the threat level of this boy if he were to attack.

"You're the kid coming from Konoha?" The words broke through the odd tension like a rock through a window and both brown and blue eyes focused on the guard holding the papers.

"Yup, that's me!" Naruto spoke with an enthusiastic smile.

"I thought you were going to arrive, I don't know, five days ago. You're a ninja right?" Concern seemed to creep into his green eyes as he gazed at the boy in front of him.

"Eh hehe.." Again a look of embarrassment swept across his round face. "Well I didn't think it was all that important to rush.." His voice trailed off into the cool zephyr. (AN: Haha I used zephyr, applaud.)

"Oh, it's fine, I was just worried you might have ran into trouble. I wasn't scolding you or anything." He gave a warm smile as a warm silence enveloped them.

"Hey," Blue eyes jumped to the dark haired man, the source of the harsh, deep voice. Grinning his well practiced grin, Naruto hid all his unnecessary anxiety from the intimidating figure of the guard. "What's with the fox?"

A fox? Naruto's eyes widened as he quickly shot a frantic glance toward his feet, searching for the animal. An irritated scowl graced his downcast face, sure enough sitting innocently next to his right foot was a small, red fox. A second passed as the guards awaited an answer, apparently unaware of the previous uneasiness and agitation emitted from the blond. Smiling a sweet, nervous smile, Naruto bent down to retrieve the animal and cradle him in his tanned arms.

"This?" He said while forcefully thrusting the red creature closer to them. "This is my pet fox." _Because they'll totally buy that (sarcasm.)_ Thought the blond as he began a streaming cusses inwardly, while trying to hold his face in the smiling state.

"Aww, he's cute." The green eyed man reached out to pat the fluffy animal. "Does he have a name?" He asked, proceeding to massage the top of the fox's head, in between his ears.

_A name?_ "Uh, yeah of course he does... it's uh..," his mind whorled creating a blur, unable to grasp a single suitable name. "Uh..," both green and brown eyes seemed to be boring holes into his body. "Teme!" The green eyed man's hand fell from the red fur into the strange silence.

The shinobi gave each other an amused glance, while the light haired brunette snickered a bit trying to hide his mocking smile behind his hand (for the sake of decreasing the humiliation for Naruto,) though only succeeding in amplifying the embarrassment for our blond. "Teme?" A deep blush fell over his tanned cheeks.

"Yep, his name is Teme..." Each word struggled and strained to escape through his mouth and his blue eyes glazed, blankly staring at the red fur of the fox. He had just given this fox the pet name for his cheating boyfriend, awkward silence was expected. An uncomfortable chuckle escaped between his pink lips.

"Well, okay..." The words hung in the air, ringing in their ears, it didn't matter who said them, though if it had finding which person would have been impossible as the voice seemed to fade and each one of them seemed to be trapped in a blurring bubble.

Wriggling and whining the fox pulled Naruto from the odd out of body feeling. "Ah, well I should go..." He spoke with a soft, embarrassed voice, as if trying to hide from the two while stepping forward to receive his papers that lay on the counter and slowly inching toward the village within the walls the small fox cradled in his arms.

"Oh, yeah... of course. I hope you like it here," The friendly man smiled and waved at the withdrawing blond, as the other gave an amused smirk.

A sigh accompanied his defeated face as he made his way through the multitude of buildings. Each structure wasn't very large, a medium size, in was a cute village, nothing too huge like Konoha, though not as small as a normal village (meaning a non-ninja village.)

Swinging his backpack around his right shoulder (after setting the fox down) he slid his papers in, taking out a smaller slip of paper in the process. Taking a glance at the paper, he began to make his way toward a larger four story building, an apartment complex, while the little red animal followed him energetically.

Entering the complex wasn't anything special. The walls of the lobby were a standard white with a few framed pictures as decorations, the furniture had creamy white cushions and dark wooden frames with coffee tables to match. Fancy lamps stood on the few counters and tables, the lobby itself was rather large, though it was rather comfortable with large windows to shed light and give a beautiful view of the garden and the scattered potted plants.

Naruto made his way up to the receptionist, who was diligently writing some sort of script behind a White Oak counter. Her hair up in a messy brown bun with a few strands hanging upon the neck of her white button up blouse and her bangs which fell lightly upon her tanned skin. Her glistening brown eyes shot up from her work to meet his blue ones.

"Hello, are you Naruto?" She spoke with practiced politeness after studying him for a moment. A nod was her answer. "So you're from Konoha, I have some friends who live there..." Turning she grabbed one of the many keys from behind her as she continued making friendly conversation, not minding the one sidedness of it. "But you probably don't know them, Konoha is much bigger. Here everyone pretty much knows everyone else, but I'm guessing in Konoha there are to many people for you to know all of them." Writing a quick note she stepped forward to hand him the slip and the key. "You probably already know the room and the floor, but I wrote it down anyways. Here's the key, and the apartment has already been paid for in advanced so no need to worry about the money. I hope you like it here." Giving a sweet smile she sat and began scribbling on the paper she had been working on previously.

Walking to the elevator a tender expression fell upon his face, the people here were really nice. Stepping onto the platform, after the doors opened, and the fox made it in, he clicked the button for floor four and waited. The walls of the elevator were a Honduran Mahogany and the railings were fancy looking swirls made of metal.

Elevator music filled his ears as the the floor number changed from one, to two, to three and finally four. Once the doors had opened Naruto was engulfed in a more natural light than the dimmer light of the elevator. To the right there was a white wall containing the numbered doors, while to the left was a walkway to the other side of the building and a large rectangular hole that looked down upon the lobby. The railings were made of glass, lined with metal that complemented the surrounding white floor. He walked over to the edge to gaze at the large sky like, filtering light from above. A smile washed over his face, this place was amazing.

Pushing up from his leaning position he made his way to the orderly wood doors positioned on the white wall, looking for one specifically. Doors were left, forgotten, as he searched each number until suddenly halting, as the door had been found right next to the elevator he had just exited. The number '405' was engraved on the golden plate of the apartment, as he pushed the key into the hole and unlocked the door.

"Woah!" An unrestrained grin formed on his face, his eyes twinkling. Stepping in and closing the door (after the fox was in as well,) he moved toward the creamy couch diagonally to the right of him, facing the fireplace behind that. The walls were white, the floor Hard Maple that stretched over every inch of the apartment. Directly to his right was a cream cushioned ledge in front of a convex window that overlooked the grassy land beyond the walls of the city (the walls weren't very tall to begin with.)

"Kyuu! Kyuu! This place is like three times bigger than my apartment in Konoha!" Yelling toward the red fox. Looking over at the energetic blond boy, who was bouncing happily throughout the apartment, the fox began to grow, losing his fur, ears and tail, until he was fully human. Naruto swung his head toward the man standing naked in the living room facing the door with his long, mid back length, red hair, muscular body and sharp golden eyes.

"Gyah!" The blond turned to face the wall, covering his blue eyes while reaching into his bag and throwing a pair of blue boxers over to the man. "Kyuu, you have to tell me when you change! And put on the boxers... Are you decent?" he spoke with a soft, fearful voice, cautiously glancing over his shoulder.

"Yes, you brat. I am 'dressed' now." He threw a glare at the cowering boy. "I don't see why it matters all that much, I'm using a boy's body so we're both men." He crossed his arms and raising an eyebrow, a light frown across his lips.

"But what if someone comes in! What will they think!" Looking over to Kyuubi, he gave a worried look.

"What? You're afraid that they'll think you're gay? Everyone already knows, I mean you're too cute not to be (what kind of girl wants to date a boy cuter than them?) Anyway, who would come in? No one knows you here." A mocking smirk met his lips as he saw Naruto wave off his answer to continue looking through the apartment. "Besides that, how'd (AN: apparently 'how'd' isn't actually a word/conjunction but I'm using it anyway) you score this place?" Taking a glance around.

Smiling slyly as he turned slowly to face the demon he opened his mouth to say, "I'm amazing, aren't I?" while noiselessly chuckling and eying the man with laughing eyes.

"Don't exaggerate. That old hag always did have a soft spot for you, I bet you didn't actually have to do much, I mean there isn't much you could do, having no skills and all..."

"No skills? You don't know me very well." His smile faded as his bottom lips slipped out slightly, his eyes glistened as water gathered around the rims of his eyes and his eyebrows creases to display an irresistibly cute pout over his face. "You don't like my puppy-dog face?" Taking in a quick, whimpering breathe occasionally, and speaking with a strained, sad voice he tilted his head downward to look up at the red head.

"Goddamn you!" he spoke harshly while averting his narrowed eyes to his right at the kitchen, complete with a Clear Pine table and chairs set upon the tiled floor. The white marbled counter stretched from the middle of the left wall (the wall with the entrance door on it) passed the corner following to the middle of the far wall where it was connected with the stove. To the right was a pantry and just beyond that three doors were lined up. The door on the left, the master bedroom, the middle, the bathroom (also connected with the master bedroom) and on the right was the guest room. In the center of the whole apartment was a single closet, the door facing the living room while it's other sides faced the kitchen and the bedrooms. (AN: Ahh, I'm sorry that was confusing...) "You don't have any _real_ talents, ones that help you survive."

"But we got a free, awesome, large, furnished apartment with my skills, don't you think that counts as help in survival?" he laughed over his shoulder while hopping into the kitchen looking through each cabinet.

A frown met Kyuu's mouth, "When were you able to come up with moderately good comebacks? Usually you can't even think straight." This statement was returned with a 'Hey!' though it was successfully ignored. "For example a normal person would have been able to think of a normal name, like Aka or Kitsune (red or fox), I mean those are basically descriptions, but even Ku or Kyuu (both are the word for nine) would have sufficed, but no you chose Teme."

"W-Well I was thinking of him the most!" A saddened frown tainted his bubbly face.

"You don't know how insulted I am to have been dubbed the same name as that jerk!" He glared heatedly at the blond standing limply on the tiled floors.

"He's not that bad, really, h-he probably has a reason--a good reason-- and I mean I don't think I was meant to find out..." His voice was filled with defeat, his downcast eyes unsure and his mouth formed in the slightest frown.

"Bullshit. God Naruto, he doesn't love you, get over him. There are plenty of other people in the world." Angry and annoyed he stared at the blond.

Naruto lifted his head and turned to the refrigerator (previously) behind him whispering an angry "if only one of them didn't hate me," to himself as he rotated.

If Kyuu had been a human the words would have never graced his ears, but he wasn't, the words rang loud and clear. Opening his mouth to speak, "There's nothing in the fridge or the cabinets, we're going to have to go shopping..." only to be interrupted by the boy.

"Yeah, sure, whatever. But about what you said-"

"I already know what you're going to say," Naruto turned, once again, to spit out the angry words, "Aw, poor little Naru, you're not hated by everyone, I would know because I didn't go through beatings all through my childhood and I'm not the center of their glares." His voice in a mocking, high pitched mimic, "But you know what? I don't care what you have to say, so shut up." Malice drifted the silence that endowed them, soon to dissipate into an empty, regretful one. Kyuu sat slowly on the squishy couch as Naruto walked up the few steps to the bedroom on the left, taking one glance in before turning to slap a smile on his face to yell.

"Kyuu Kyuu," His voice sounded sweet, oblivious and innocent, "I want the master bedroom. It has a large bed! Come on, look!" He walked up to the frowning red head, grabbing the slim wrist, dragging the towering man through the door, over to the queen sized bed. "I've never had a bed this big for myself." The blond sat on the bed, bouncing slightly on the comfortable mattress. "Come on sit." Reaching out he pulled the man, causing him to fall onto the cream covers, Naruto under him. Looking down at Naruto with a glare his gaze met the bubbly, smiling face before letting a faint smirk resistantly grace his mouth.

"You're such a kid." Kyuu stated as he raised himself from the fallen position to stand next to the sitting blond who now possessed a cute pout on his rounded face and study the room. On the far wall was a large window looking over the busy town, to the left of the window was a Hard Maple dresser, a mirror hanging above it on the white wall. Other than that the medium sized room was empty and the walls were blank, not counting the doors, one to Kyuu's right leading the the bathroom and the one he had entered through.

"That's mean Kyuu, I'm nearly eighteen, don't call me a kid." He deepened the pout, and attempted at giving Kyuu a stern look. It proved to be difficult, pouting while looking stern that is.

"Yeah, yeah. No matter how old you are you're still gonna be a kid." Kyuu said with a self satisfying smirk.

"But that's because you cheat. And just because you've lived for a couple millennia doesn't effect my maturity." Smug, that's the only way to describe the expression displayed on his round face.

"I wasn't saying you were a kid because of your age, I'm you're a kid 'cause you'll never mature." A fox-like grin showed his sharp canine teeth and he turned to leave the room.

"That's mean!" Naruto turned to grab a pillow to throw at the fox demon, failing to hit his target as the door closed and he was left alone. "Jerk..." His muttered voice was faintly heard through the door causing a chuckle to hang in the air.

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('-') LINE BREAK ('-')

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The knocks on the door echoed through the office, alerting the man at his desk. "Come in." The handle of the door twisted and swung to uncover the visitor. "Naruto...? I haven't seen you in years." The man stood walking around his desk, his white doctor coat flowing behind him. As he came to be a foot away from the boy he reached out to envelope the smaller boy in a hug. Kyuu trotted through the door over to a chair to sit beneath it (in fox form,) planning to stay quite during this reunion.

"Tana-chan!" Naruto responded, returning the embrace, off balancing the man and nearly knocking them both to the floor.

"Naru, what are you doing here? Are you just passing by or... is something wrong?" A look of worry crossed over his dark skin as he ran a worn hand through his shoulder length black hair.

The only answer given was a quiet, solemn gaze at the carpeted floor, followed by a sad smile and a "Nothing's the matter, what makes you think that?"

"Naru..?" Tanaka (that's his name) spoke, looking rather concerned by the odd behavior. A pause, a smile and a jump. "Aww, cute lil (little) Naru-chan, don't feel sad, smile~!" The elder man proceeded to tickle the boy who had fallen on his bottom and now was lying, laughing on the floor. "And don't lie to me," he gave a stern look from atop the boy "it's not nice." and a pout (a stern one) before hoisting himself up and stuck out a hand for the boy. Setting all childish smiles behind, he adjusted his glasses as he sat down again behind the desk and motioned for the blond to take a set at one of the chairs.

"So," He gave a concerned look toward the boy in front of him. "What seems to be this problem that you apparently couldn't handle in Konoha?" Threading his fingers together and perching his elbows on the wooden desk he balanced his chin on his hands to gaze into the child's eyes. Because that's all he really was, a child.

Naruto smiled, up until the tickling he had forgotten that this was Sasaki Tanaka, this man wouldn't shun him for anything he had done, he was too carefree.

The first time they had met was back when he was thirteen, traveling with Jiraiya, right when the man was introduced to him he had jumped, wrapping his arms around the small teen and dragged him through the hospital (where he works) to show all his colleges the "cute little chibi" he had "found."

"Well, it's nothing too serious," He spoke with a smile. "I'm not going to die or anything." Tanaka's face relaxed with relief. "I just didn't really want to stay in Konoha, it's a little embarrassing..." A blush grew over his tan cheeks, painting a nice pink onto his skin.

"Aw, Naru you're so cute~!" The doctor spoke in a high pitched voice, as if he were talking to a baby. The blush deepened at the statement as he look toward the floor to hide his embarrassment. "You can tell me anything embarrassing, I won't laugh~!"

"Uh, so I'm..." Naruto paused to look at the dark brown eyes. "Well, I'm pregnant." He stated as calmly as he could, his face nearly completely red, his hands playing with the end of his shirt and his eyes downcast.

The silence was deafening. (AN: one of the worst clichés ever... haha)

"B-b-but how!?" A disturbed look passed over Tanaka's face. Naruto gave the floor a peeved look. How could he have thought Tanaka would understand, that repulsion was _definitely_ aimed toward him, he's probably disgusted, just the- "You've had sex!? With who? Why isn't he here? Have you even told him?!... D-did he leave you?" Tears had welled in his eyes by thing point. "My poor Naru, it's okay I'll always love you~! He probably left because he was so jealous of how cute you are~!" Tana jumped, nearly flying over his desk to reach Naruto and pull him into a comforting (strangling) hug, and began showering the boy with a myriad of compliments and sorrowful tears. "He wasn't good enough for you if he left you!"

"Um, Tana, he didn't leave, we're still together." All motion seemed to cease as Tana pulled away to gaze at the boys face, his face completely devoid of tears, or any indications of crying, as it was more of fake crying, for the sake of drama, than anything else.

"What? Then why are you here?" His eyes filled with curiosity, "Not that I don't want you here, you know I love your visits, well I assume I would if you had visited." Giving a rebuking frown.

"Well... uh, there are just to many complications..." Laughing nervously though trying to avoid answering the question wasn't the best plan as Tanaka can be fairly scary when necessary, as he was now, eyes gleaming dangerously, with deep concern.

"Naru-chan, you can tell me, I wouldn't tell anyone anything you don't want me to. And you are now my patient so all matters we discuss will be counted as confidential." Stepping back to give the boy room, he leaned back against the desk and looked over the kid. His hair was longer, and inch or so shorter than shoulder length, with less gravity defying spikes. His face was less rounded though he still had a cute face with large blue eyes. His body was lean, no very muscular, though there was no doubt in Tana's mind that the kid could probably kill you with just his strength. _I guess I shouldn't call him cute anymore. He's more like beautiful..._ The thought was depressing, he took another glance at the boy who had a small thinking pout places on his smooth face. _Scratch that, he's still adorable~!_ A muffled giggle escaped his mouth.

"Well I wouldn't normally have a problem telling Tsunade-baa-chan but... She would have to tell the council, it's not like this is something we can hide very well..." He sighed in defeat at the though of the council. It felt good to talk about this, him and Kyuu never talked about it, he knew Kyuubi already understood, or at least he hoped he did, either way he was going to hear what he had to say. "I guess the main reason is that Sasuke-- um, I mean my boyfriend-- I don't really think he would be prepared to have a child. And he has always been cold and emotionless, even to me, I don't want my child to grow up thinking that he isn't loved by his family. Who would, right? And I can't take care of a child, and I guess it just seemed logical to hide it... I just get the feeling that Sasu-- my boyfriend wouldn't want him, er, or her. Even if he did I'm afraid-- no I'm sure it would be just because my baby has the Uchiha bloodline... Not only that but what about the villagers, they'll probably think that the baby is a demon too... There are just so many things that could happen, and probably would." A deep sigh hung in the air.

Their eyes met as Naruto brought his eyes up. "So when you said Sasuke and Uchiha," Naruto looked back down at the carpet. "You mean Uchiha Sasuke, one of the last Uchiha's. Right?"

"Um... yeah?" His voice was soft and defeated. A moment passed before he looked up once again with obvious worrying sketched in his face. "You won't make me go back, will you? Just because I carrying the heir of the Uchiha clan, right?"

"No, Naru, I won't." He sighed. "I believe you have noble ambitions, and though I'm worried for you, since you're trying to do this all alone and for the child's sake, I won't tell anyone or make you do anything you don't want to. You aren't here to have an abortion I assume?"

"Of course!" Naruto looked at him with an incredulous expression plastered over his cute profile. "I can't kill the baby for some stupid thing I did, it's completely unethical!" Tanaka playfully snorted at Naru's use of the word "unethical," who would have guessed he knew the definition. "And I'm not here alone." Smiling warmly he pushed out of the chair to kneel down and pick up Kyuu. "Look, it's Kyuu." The blond stated as he thrusted the small fox into the doctors face. (AN: I don't know why but I feel like I _must_ tell you, I'm not anti-abortion, this has to happen for the sake of the undeveloped plot.)

"Uh, Naru, that's a fox, he won't be much help... though you look very cute with him~!" He reached you to hug the petite boy, but was met with the feeling of a larger, more muscular, naked, figure. Quickly he released his grip on the man and stepped back to look over the scene, which consisted of a blushing Naru (cute~!) and some mysterious, naked, red head.

"Gyah! Kyuu, how many times do I have to tell you to at least change in a place where there aren't any people, and put on some clothes. Be glad I predicted this!" Naruto threw a spare pair of boxers at the naked man who, once receiving then, proceeded to put on the garments as Naru began to straighten his clothes while the doctor gazed curiously at them both. "Anyway, this is Kyuu. Kyuu, Tanaka." Golden eyes met brown as each gave the other a nod of acknowledgment.

"So when you call him Kyuu, you mean Kyuubi, in which you mean Kyuubi as in the Nine Tailed Fox Demon, the lord of demons." Naruto smiled cutely and gave an excited nod. "Naru..." His voice was menacing. "You're too cute for your own good~!" Pouncing forward he hugged the blond.

"So, Tana-chan," Kyuu smiled mockingly as he spoke. "Do you want to hear the details about the pregnancy? We'll need to discuss this sometime."

"You both just got in tonight, did you not? You would have visited me soon if you hadn't... right?" Naruto answered with a sweet "yes" for the both of them. "Well, we can talk about it tomorrow, then we can spend the day together, and you probably need your rest, right Naru-chan?" A quick nod was his answer. "I'll have tomorrow off, it would be the perfect time, since I want to spend as much time with my Naru as possible." He smiled, hugging Naruto tighter.

"Okay Tana-chan! We need to do some shopping anyway," Wriggling to be free of the doctor, Naruto moved to grab the newly transformed Kyuu and place the discarded boxers in his bag. "Bye Tana." He yelled from the hall and therefore rebuked from a passing nurse he had nearly knocked over. _So cute_...

(AN:I'm sorry that scene sucks [*this is an after thought* Kay, so I was gonna put 'like crap' after sucks but you know what I realized? Crap doesn't suck. I know it works in a certain meaning of sucks but after realizing that it doesn't vacuum-like suck I can't think of it as the same, it just doesn't sound right,] laugh at it all you want but I'm not changing it, too lazy...)

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~(''-) Catch the squiggle (-'') ~

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"Finally," His voice rang out with fatigue as he went to the clothing section of the recently entered store. "This was taking way too long..." He went searching through the rack of T-shirts, looking for a large before glancing over at the fox for a "yes" or a "no." "This wouldn't have taken so long if you weren't so picky, we had to search nearly the whole village for a store that would let you in... I could have chosen your clothes and we would have been done with it. But no, you didn't trust my eye for fashion..." The rant (more like mumbling) continued as he kept searching for clothing he thought Kyuu would find acceptable.

Glancing over at the pile of "okay'd" clothing, which had grown considerably, he deemed it as enough clothing and dragged the pile (along with the boxers Kyuu had worn earlier,) as well as the fox, into a dressing room before exiting to let him dress himself.

The store was a decent size, the merchandise ranging from food to bedding to outdoor material. It was kind of exciting. In Konoha most of the stores wouldn't let him within a ten foot radius, let alone inside... Here there wasn't a glare in sight. A smile graced his lips.

Walking through the various departments of clothing his eyes scanned the racks until something caught his eye. It was furry and brown, and odd combination. though it added to the mystery. Looking around to see if anyone was watching he walked toward the strange garb, and pulled it out from its place, squished between some piece of baby blue clothing and another cloth of a pale yellow. Uncovering its identity an embarrassed blush dotted his cheeks, it was a onesie (with feet,) as in baby clothing, when had he wandered into the baby section?! It was rather cute, imagining it on some poor child, it was, as said previously, brown and furry with a tail and a hood with dog ears sticking out of the top. A humored smile crept onto his face as he blushed again at the thought of a little boy with black hair and dark eyes wearing it, his little chubby face painted like a dogs. His blush darkened at the adorable picture. _My baby would be so cute..._ His eyes trailed downward to gaze at his flat stomach as if to say "you're going to be wearing this." He chuckled a bit.

"What's so funny?" Naruto spun around, his face becoming redder with each moment, as he turned he realized he was holding the onesie and quickly stuffed it into the rack behind him. The man standing there was dressed in baggy jeans with a plain red T-shirt layered with a black long sleeved shirt.

"Jerk! Don't sneak up on people!" The blush had yet to disperse as he reached out to drag the man to the check-out counter while trying to avoid all chances for any questions.

"So Kyuu, what do you want to eat tonight?" He spoke as they made their way to the exit. "Ah!" Naru whined as they stepped outside. "It's already dark! It wouldn't be this late if _you_ hadn't been so picky..." It was true, the night had come, smearing the sky into a dark blue leaving millions of twinkling lights and the shining moon. Beautiful and peaceful would have described the scene if Naruto hadn't been so irked and sending Kyuu an angry glare.

"Hey, it's not my fault you're too puny and I can't fit into your clothes. Besides you wouldn't want me walking around naked, would you?" Ignoring the pitiful glare he walked the street toward some food stands leaving the blond to carry the bags of clothing.

"Hey! You don't have to be such a jerk, help me carry _your_ clothing!"

"You're the one that doesn't want me naked, so you carry them." The boy made his way behind the red head, giving an annoyed huff before quieting down and following the larger man down the street like a puppy.

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AN: So that final scene also sucks and for some reason I get the feeling Kyuu likes Naru, he's always teasing him. Now you're probably thinking something like 'are you hinting at something,' or 'shouldn't you know, you're the author,' and yes I am the author, but no I don't actually know if Kyuu likes Naru or not. He definitely acts like it though.


	3. Ch 2:Are You Excited?

**So my little duckies, do you like my badly written story along with it's partially thought out plot? **

**Disclaimer: Yo peeps, I ain't gonna lie, Naruto ain't mine and I would tell you who it belongs to but, really, to tell the truth, I don't know.**

**Sooooo. Sorry I haven't been writing? I decided to dedicate this chapter to Na No Wri Mo (National Novel Writing Month **:P es November**) Cool for you, I suppose... I'm so stressed out and yet I'm doing this rather unproductive activity because I'm a fucking angel. Don't you see my halo above my horns? [PS I wrote this at the beginning or November... it's not really the beginning of November anymore... I blame school.]**

**Oh... also, I've been changing my ka-name (do you every feel the strong urge to put ka's at the beginning of words that start with "n?" I blame ka-now[know]...) a lot... I'm sorry if it's an inconvenience... I'm an indecisive little brat. Forgive meh?

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Chapter 2

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"Whoa, whoa, whoa-- wait. So you're trying to tell me _you_ turned Naru into a demon?" The lower lid of his eye twitched slightly and a small, disbelieving laugh rolled from his mouth while his right eyebrow lifted in confusion.

"No. I didn't _turn_ 'Naru' into a demon." His fine lips fell to a scowl as he crossed his arms an leaned back into the cushioned seat. "That makes it sound like I did it on purpose. It wasn't even remotely my fault!" Kyuubi narrowed his golden eyes to gaze sternly at the man in front of him, who scoffed at his (Kyuu's) statement. (AN: Was that confusing? I'm sorry if it was...) "I'm serious, I couldn't do anything to stop it. If you want to blame anyone blame little 'Naru's' stupid father, who apparently can't even seal a demon correctly." Childishly pouting he collapsed into the green cushions of the chair after shooting Tanaka a heated glare.

"We aren't here to place blame." Tanaka took a condescending glance at Kyuu as he spoke these words (ignoring the cold glare sent toward him in return) before settling more comfortably in his chair behind his desk. Placing his elbows upon the wood surface he perched his chin upon his hands. "So explain this to me again, how did this happen?" he signed, snobbishly.

"Hey! Don't act like you're the mature one here. You were placing the blame first!" His eyes narrowed as they met with Tanaka's brown ones, neither willing to back down until Kyuu's golden eyes overcame the childishness, rolling as he fell back into the chair once again. "Well this all started because of that seal. It had countless flaws, though the biggest one was that it didn't completely seal me away. I understand why though, it would have taken numerous trails to find a way to seal even half of my power." he smirked with pride before snorting, "But because of that my Chakra was constantly moving through Naruto's body as he grew up, this altered the way his cells grew eventually mutating them into something neither human or demon, probably what you would call a 'half-demon.'" A sorrowful sign left him as he leaned forward to place his elbows on the arms of the chair. "That wasn't the only problem: because the Chakra was always moving from me to him (and visa versa) the seal began to wear away until eventually it just, crumbled and I here I am."

Both of them stared at the other, lost in thought. Kyuu's eyes wandered to the light that filtered in from the window behind Tanaka, illuminating all of the dust that floated through the air. In an odd way it was relaxing; something calming; just by gazing at it nothing else existed. The birds from outside faintly sang to one another, playing, dancing. It was rather grotesque, the concept that the world will still move on even when everything seems to be troubling. Whipping his head back to Tanaka in the realization that he (Tanaka) had been talking to him; Tanaka's words began to turn from a blur of sound into each articulated word. "Ehhh, What?" was Kyuu's intelligent reply. (A/N: I realize that was completely pointless, but I'm going for quantity... Maybe I shouldn't?)

Shooting Kyuubi a frustrated glare he took a deep breath, "I said: what are the side effects?" The blank stare that was returned from Kyuu made him roll his eyes in irritation, "Of Naru-chan becoming a 'half demon,' the side effects." Kyuu's countenance melted into an expression of understanding as his mouth opened up into an "o."

"Well..." The smile that swept over his face revealed nearly all his teeth, Tanaka leaned in closer with anticipation. "I don't know." He was still smiling, it seemed as if he was sure every problem in the world would be fixed if he kept his smile glowing. The brunette's reaction wasn't quite the same, if anything the smile seemed to worsen the entire commodity.

"What?!" Each syllable was that tick of a time bomb, the 't' harshly spitting from his mouth. "How do you not know what the side effects are?" Kyuu shrank back into the chair, hoping, pleading to disappear into the gross green fabric. Though as he did he suddenly became aware of all the sick patients who would sit on him and wipe their germs across the small weaves of the green chair, in this mindset he rose, again, into a straight posture and prepared to defend himself.

Taking a deep breath, he began, "And how would I know the side effects?" Tanaka moved to answer, though was cut off (apparently unaware that it was a rhetorical question,) "This has _never_ happened before."

"But there are plenty of half demons out there, right? This must have happened before!?" The anger crept more violently into his voice trying to explode, and coming close to that goal.

"No, those half demons weren't ever created this way. They were all 'made' genetically. Ya' know, one parent is a demon, the other a human. And (to correct you) there aren't _plenty_ of half demons in the world, considering demons hate humans and humans fear demons. Most demons can barely stomach the idea of coming in contact with one of you, let alone love one. We hate humans, and they fear us, that's how it's always been, excluding those few couples who '_love_.'" scoffing out each acid word.

"How are we suppose to find a solution then? Naruto could die from this- this- whatever and you don't seem to realize that!" Each word increased the distress, the frantic motions, it was as if everything was falling apart. The worry was killing him, slowly eroding away at all the sanity he had left. Naruto: perhaps just another charity case, but at the same time he seemed to be more than that. It wasn't as cliché as "the younger brother he never had" but the feeling for him was strong, though it was all probably pity for a lonely child who never had anything but the rock bottom he'd hit, and yet, was still sinking. The last time he had seen him—he never thought it could get any worse.

"Tch. Don't act like you're the only one (if one at all) who cares, _human_." The word flung from his mouth, as if it belonged to everything detestable, something neither gods nor devils would accept. "Naruto..." glancing downward to hide his softening eyes, "is the only human—perhaps only creature—that I have ever cared about," his eyes raised; pointed, hateful, filled with a radiance of disgust, "Don't ever try to doubt me. I'm not human, I don't lie." A deep shudder of fear shook through Tanaka's body, his eyes grew wide and a whimper escaped him as he began to shrink back, away from the demonic presence that swirled through the room heavily and probably through the hospital as well. "Heh," all the pressure dispersed in a sudden moment, "This isn't helping. The fact that I hate you (AN: I would like to recognize this moment in time, because I have just realized that Kyuu's feelings for Tanaka change abruptly in this paragraph. If you noticed this and feel like I didn't seem to know, I know. And if you're wondering why I haven't edited any of the parts before this moment to stay consistent with the plot, the reason is simple: it would be a shit load of work and wouldn't be worth it. This long commentary makes it hard to read the story doesn't it? :P) remains the same whether we work together, or not. I—"

This was Kyuubi, the king of demons, and yet that fact seemed to just... flutter away. Tanaka couldn't stand it, being told so blatantly that he didn't care for Naruto the most, or that he was so hated for no real reason. It didn't occur to him that he hardly knew Naruto, or that Kyuu had every reason to hate every human that ever graced the earth—it was just his opinion. The words ran from his mouth, uncontrollably, "Then why work with me at all!" no respect, no understanding, the words just let loose.

"Heh. That's what I hate about humans." Kyuu had stopped to gaze sternly upon this weak human. His eyes wandered coldly to fixate on the distant window, "They care so much for this 'image,' that is just that: an image. You humans fluff up your lives with worthless morals, always trying to mold a perfect mask to hide your 'distorted' face. This mask of yours is uglier than your face could ever be. Not only that, but these 'morals' of your destroyed him..." A distressed look crossed Kyuu's face, his eyebrows creased, trying to understand and his mouth frowned in distaste. "But this has nothing to do with anything." His sharp eyes moved directly to Tanaka; a serious tone; a serious manner. "I need your medical knowledge of humans, that is the only reason I as for help. I'm not doing this for me—it disgusts me to no end (asking for a human's help)—I do this for Naruto's sake, I believe we can both agree on those terms."

Tanaka's dark eyebrows scrunched together, his face downcast in shame. "Yeah," timidly the word tumbled awkwardly out of his defeated mouth. "What do you know about his condition...?" His voice flowed quietly in regret.

"I believe that not much changed from a normal human pregnancy, he is just a male instead of a female. I need you to check the child's development since I'm under the impression that this 'condition' isn't much like a demons (if it was I wouldn't need you.)"

"How far along is he?" Tanaka lifted his knee to position his note pad for a better angle to write, trying to ignore the tension that still lingered.

"Five months." _Five very odd months._ The first few weeks hadn't been much (if any) different, but slowly he had been showing signs. Morning sickness, cravings, mood swings; they weren't extreme and hardly ever happened but, to make matters worse (if it's a bad thing at all... it was both a blessing an a curse,) Kyuu doubted Sasuke even noticed the changes at all. Even when the small lump started to show. Nonetheless Naruto had been paranoid, feeling that every pair of eyes that laid upon him were mocking him, laughing, scorning. It was a constant roller coaster, much too hectic for Kyuu.

"This would be easier if he were here." The words were aimed more to himself than to Kyuu, but the thought was turned and examined in his mind. Lifting his face, "Why isn't Naru-Naru here? Nothing's wrong, I hope." He thought over his words, "If there was something wrong, wouldn't it be better to bring him along...?"

"No, no. Nothing's wrong, it's just—well—I knew I would be explaining his condition... And how it was possible for him to conceive... I thought it best not to reopen his wounds." His voice became more and more confident; he knew that it wouldn't have been alright to bring Naruto along for this session.

"Wait, I'm confused. Reopen... wounds?" Tanaka's mind scrambled about, trying to make sense of the sentence's meaning.

"Naruto—he is sensitive about being a 'half-demon.'" The red eyebrows creased, "You should already be aware that people have scorned him because I'm a demon." A dumb nod. "Well, people have always said he _was_ the demon, and now... he basically is one. Or... half of one, anyway."

"Well, can't we comfort him in anyway?" Tanaka's perplexed look made Kyuu scoff.

"What? You think that everything can be solved? Everything can end with a nice little 'Happily ever After?' Naruto can make it through this himself." Tanaka's mouth opened to protest. "How do you suppose we go about comforting him? 'Hey, Naruto, it's okay, you're not completely a demon.' Don't you think that would be rubbing in salt?" Kyuu's eye's hardened again. _This guy, why don't humans understand that there isn't always and easier path?_ "Naruto's a big boy (despite his lack of maturity) and he needs to learn to stand by himself. During his time here, away from the glares that cut him down before he can grow, I plan to help him learn that."

Tanaka looked unsure, but Kyuu's face left no room to wiggle. "I... suppose you're right..." Again, a silence engulfed them (it seemed to happen progressively today.) "Hey, um..." Tanaka began to gather his courage to speak again. "S-so, are there any observations of Naru's condition I should know about...?" The words were stuttered and apprehensive and a shy attempt of focusing the conversation on Naruto (rather than on his stupidity.)

"Well... so far it seems that most of his Chakra is being used to protect the fetus, he barely has any left to use on anything else. Basically his vulnerable until the baby is born."

Tanaka's eyes grew with alarm, "Then shouldn't you—or at least someone—be with him right now?"

"He would have enough Chakra to—I don't know—teleport if he were attacked by someone. And besides, I told him he could wander the village and not to leave the walls." His golden eyes drifted to the window, yonder again. A blissful look encompassed his face. "He understands the situation, and he's growing up, I doubt he'll do anything perilous that will possibly endanger him or the child. I trust Naruto."

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O.o LOOK!! YOUR FACE o.O

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Gently, he laid his fingertips upon the rough bark (if fear of splinters.) Half his face was hidden behind the trunk of the old tree. It brought about an odd topic for contemplation, (a tree? In the Hidden _Grass_ Village?) but that belonged to another day, his sights were focused on the gate a good ten meters from his post. A foxy grin stretched his face and his eyes narrowed as if to enhance his vision. His butt was rested upon his ankles (which were becoming sore from sitting this awkwardly,) as he began to contemplate his next move. _Do I fall back? Or can I make it out? Kyuu would be mad if he found out..._ His grin morphed into a childish pout (could a pout be anything but childish?) _If... if he finds out.... Yes, if is good._ The thought tempted him to laugh maniacally, but he resisted. He wouldn't be caught now.

Darting to his right he glued his back to the cement wall, looking slyly over his shoulder to the entrance_or exit. Mwahaha._ Slowly he began to inch to the gap. He could hear the guards talking casually: "Teme? Can you believe it? He named it Teme." and snickers filled the air. A growl nearly escaped his throat when his mouth formed a scowl. _Bastards_. He glanced over his left shoulder to check the coast (if it was clear) and (after confirming his crystal path) flashed through the gate to the outside world.

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q; We will be back to Naruto after this short break ;p

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This section may be skipped if you don't feel the urge to read something pointless. (Then again you all must have that urge if you're here...)

His eyes trailed after the young lad. Both his eyebrows creased as his had scratched through his warm black hair. Lowering his hands into his Chunnin jacket he began to sashay over to the booth.

"Hey, Towata." The man with long black hair glanced up. "You saw that kid, right?"

"Yeah--"

"Hey! I saw him too, why do you only ever ask Wa-chan!? I'm reliable too!" The brow haired man shot.

"Akato."

"Yes Wa-chan?"

"Shut up." His eyes followed Akato, waiting for the reaction in amusement.

"Hey! Don't be mean! Ki-chan, make him stop." Whining to their companion.

"Towata," a sigh was necessary to survive, "I feel your pain."

"Jerks!" Akato shifted to his left, away from them, to sit in the corner of the booth. The atmosphere around him seemed to darken with each passing moment. The two men watched him wallow in his misery. Neither making any comforting move.

Eventually the silence broke, "What did you want Kintaka? About the kid."

"Oh, yeah... Um." His voice wandered off, as if he couldn't remember. "Oh! Shouldn't you be concerned? He was acting rather strangely..."

"Nah, kids can be stupid if they want to." He took a glance over at Akato as he spoke the words.

"Hey!"

(A/N: I just thought it was funny that Naruto had been seen even though he was being sneaky. Jajajaja)

* * *

q: Have your IQs' dropped enough? :p

* * *

The grass was towering. Each strand was nearly as tall as a two-story building and sturdy enough that it wouldn't easily be bent, if one were to be crazy enough to venture through it, as Naruto was doing. Once he had exited the village he had turned forty-five degrees right and started trudging through the grass. It had been fun at first, being like a safari, and gradually the fun a dwindled but he kept pushing forward until he had realized that he was lost. The green blades of grass became nauseating; he would turn right: grass. Left: grass. Back: grass. Forward: grass. He had lost his sense of direction along the way, he wasn't sure whether the village was forward, but he thought if he kept moving, eventually he'd find a clearing?

This terrain was unknown to him. There weren't even trees to climb and look over the land. The grass blades, no matter how sturdy they were, wouldn't hold his weight. Tears prickled the edges of his eyes, tempting him to fall to the ground and cry right there, but he couldn't, he had to keep moving, though he really couldn't tell anymore. (Whether he was actually moving or not.) Everything looked the same, each blade identical to the _millions_ of previous ones.

After wandering around he sat (in a small bald spot he found,) for the sake of his sanity, and tried to remember which way he had come form. _The entrance that I left from was south, so if the suns setting?_ He looked up, not being able to see much, only to see a small hole of blue. The urge to cry increased and his headache intensified. It didn't help that the annoying birds wouldn't shut up, and the wind, and that annoying running water. _Stupid water._ Naruto curled up, bringing his knees forward to rest his head upon them. _Stupid, stupid water. Water... Water!_ His head shot up as he concentrated on the sound of water.

Hopping up, he began to tumble toward the river (that's what it sounded like. And come on people, what other running water is in the wilderness, a waterfall? Those have a very distinct sound, different from a river; it's a river.) hoping that it resembled the one he was thinking of. Before he had ventured out of the town he _had_ explored the village, and numerous times pass the river that ran straight through the town. (A little too convenient, dontchya think?) It was used primarily for the water (he guessed,) but there had also been watermills built around it.

The source of water hadn't been too far from his sitting area, fifteen meters at the most, and it was nearly as large as the one in town. Never before he water looked so holy. Standing at the rocky edge he sighed in relief before collapsing to the ground. His eyelids closed as he leaned back on his hands to rest his nerves.

Peeling his eyes opened his relaxed gaze wandered the opposite coast. It was covered with rocks, grass beyond that, though something caught his eye. It was black, hung on a particularly big rock, and looked like nothing more than a blob from where he sat. Stumbling up, not taking his eyes from the form, he began amble toward it. The curiosity grew until it was like he was being drawn to it in a trance. The nearer and nearer he got the more the blob began to shape. It was a person. Naruto sped up, hoping he wasn't too late.

"Hey! Are you okay!?" So it wasn't the most ideal statement for this situation. This person obviously wasn't alright, but he felt he needed to speak; it was as if speaking would heal this girl (he assumed so anyway.) Her hair was spread over her back, wet and clinging; her head was placed face-down on the rock; her left arm thrown over it to ensure her stable (so she wouldn't drown.) Naruto sloshed through the water, not minding his sneakers (why would he were those annoying sandals when he didn't have to?) were soaked and awkwardly squishy. Reaching out, he check her pulse. At first he frowned in distress, he couldn't feel the pulse, but he concentrated, focusing only on her, a moment or two passed. _There._ The pulse was weak, but it was there. It was there.

A small smile crossed his face as he relaxed in relief. He stood there, happy she was alive, gazing at her, his mind blank before he realized that he should take her to the hospital. He bent forward to hoist her right side up to roll her onto rocky land. He jumped back, in surprise? In freight? In hate? And stumbled upon the slipper rocks beneath him, falling onto his butt. The water was cold, and reached his mid torso, but he didn't care. His eyes were fixated upon the girl, laying face up on the shore.

He carefully pushed himself up to a standing position to sneer at the girl. This girl—who wasn't a girl at all—brought about and overwhelming sea of emotions. His mouth opened to form the word, "Itachi," it wasn't particularly distasteful in his mouth, but he felt the obligation to despise it. It held such a bad connotation, how could you not abhor it? He glared, both blue eyes filled with rage, hate, anger.

The moments passed. His eyes grew weary, as if the glare was being forced too much. As if he couldn't glare any longer.

_Hate, hate, hate, hate, hate..._ The word was repeated in his head. He was suppose to hate Itachi, with a passion. _Hate, hate, hate, hate..._ Wasn't he? Sasuke had told him, way back when, about the massacre, the parricide, homicide, it was all of those words and more. Itachi was the worst. Itachi was the enemy. Itachi was trying to kill him. And, yet, standing here, glaring at a corpse-like body... The disgust had ebbed away. It was an epiphany. Itachi had always been this figure of pure evil; of endless sin. But there he was, so helpless; so innocent. Itachi can't be all bad.... can he?

Naruto timidly outstretched his hand to touch the pale skin. Immediately his had shot backward at the coldness of the skin. He was more dead than he was alive. Crouching down to hover over the blue-ish face he decided. Naruto decided that letting Itachi die here, so pitifully, so humiliatingly—would never solve anything. He had no right to pass judgment.

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(A/N: LOOOOOKKKK! Itachi _is_ in the story.... aren't you all surprised? And, again, I didn't proof-read, so don't hurt me?)


	4. CH 3:Is It Painful To Read?

**MEOW.**

**So I read the reviews... I'm extremely flattered that most(?) of you like my writing and the story but now I feel these unbearable expectations that you probably didn't intend to push upon me—but: my gosh! Now I have to write well for every chapter... I don't think I have enough time, I spent a _long_ time on chapter one.... And finals are coming up, and I have to make sure the story isn't cliché... Maybe you guys shouldn't review until the end...? I don't think I can handle this pressure. I'm shaking (it's kinda like shivering but out of anxiety...) But, really, thanks for the reviews... they make me really happy—make me feel loved.**

**I do intend to edit the chapters one day.... just not now... Look a procrastinating chicken!**

**Disclaimer:Not mine. No—I meant the characters—the writing _is_ mine. **

**Ikimashou!

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**

~Chapter 3~

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His back was sore, aching from the awkward pressure; his left shoulder even more so. The slow rhythm of steps slowed to a stop before he sank down to a sitting position to let Itachi slip down and settle gently on the ground. He really wished there was an easier way to transport Itachi, but there wasn't (or none he could think of [with the little brain power he has ;P.]) Naruto had been walking for—who knows how long and, yet, he seemed to be gaining no ground; it was as if every other step was directed backward; canceling out the motions forward. His weak legs were pulled up and his arms wrapped around them so he could comfortably place his chin upon his knees. A pitiful looked embraced his face as he looked longingly down the river.

He wasn't even sure if he was treading in the correct direction (he had no reassuring evidence that this, indeed, was the river that ran through town.) He turned to face Itachi; his long, dark hair was still askew though it had dried considerably, and his face was scrunched with pain. While extracting Itachi from the water a deep wound (from a sword, it looked like) was found slashed through his back. It still bled, though it had been crudely bandaged, but most certainly less that it had when it was first received. Itachi's breath was harsh and uneven, complimenting his pained expression. Initially, when removed from the river, Itachi had regained his regular temperature though shortly after his condition took a sudden turn. Though whether he was having side-effects from the wound or developed a fever due to his wet clothes was unknown—it didn't much matter either way.

Naruto gazed at Itachi's pink tinted face, then to his soaked clothes. The most sane thing to do was strip him of his clothing, but Naruto was extremely reluctant to choose that option (he would be carrying him.) He held onto the hope that he would make it to town before the condition got too bad ... but even then, what was he to do? The patrol guards would question his sanity, and possibly accuse him of treason. How would he get it? And if he did: how would he go unnoticed? If he was found out... the ninjas of the Hidden Grass wouldn't think well of him and probably run him out of the village. And then what was he to do with his child? His child... Naruto sighed... He wasn't even sure how carrying Itachi would affect the baby. He was trying his hardest not to overwork his body (that's what Kyuu told him) but that proved difficult while carrying a limp body. It didn't help that Itachi was so much larger than him.

His tanned hand lay on the pale, pink, sweating forehead. It was warm, too warm to be a normal temperature. A sigh. This was all becoming so hopeless. Perhaps Itachi wasn't meant to be saved, perhaps fate had chosen it's course and he (Naruto) was here trying to swim upstream, like a salmon, only to die trying, or in the end at the least. He wasn't even sure what the point was anymore. What was he to do once Itachi was well again? Most likely Naruto would die. Itachi would wake and realize the person he had been searching for sat in his lap, it would be too easy to take Naruto and run for it. They would realize that Kyuu no longer resided in his weak body and kill him... or use him for a hostage. Before he knew it his fingers began to weave through the long strands of hair. It seemed to sooth Itachi's harsh breathes, but he couldn't really tell. Pausing his hand he looked up to the sky. It was still blue, perhaps a little less so, but it couldn't be too late. He looked in the direction he was headed; only a small stretch of sky was visible, the rest was grass. Endless grass. The colour green would haunt him until he was old and frail.

_It would be great to be back 'home.'_ Naruto took a deep breath, imagining the the rooms. White had been the primary colour used. No green in sight. The image that formed in his head was nearly holy. It was like the his holy land._ If only I could just appear back in the apartment. _If he could he would teleport both himself and Itachi into the apartment, and life would go one without trouble. The world would be fixed of sins, and the rest of his life would flow calmly and free of disruption. But he couldn't—his thoughts froze. His breath hitched. _I can!_ Quickly, his hands became a blur, he grasped Itachi's arm, concentrated and hoped—pleaded that this would work; that there wouldn't be any consequence. With a burst of Chakra disappeared.

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l: There Goes My Mind :l

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Kyuu sauntered into the apartment complex, hands in his jean pockets. Wearing clothes sucked. They were a constant weight on his body; a constant, uncomfortable weight. It would be easier to streak the streets, though the consequences weren't ideal. Being arrested wasn't his idea of fun. And it would uncover other unsettling reactions. For example, he wasn't registered as a human, anywhere, so it would cause an uproar _and_ create a spectacle of Naruto. Right now , when they were trying to lay low, causing havoc throughout the world wasn't his definition of invisible.

Shuffling through his pockets, he received the apartment key and unlocked the door. He stepped away from the mild buzz the other dwellers of the establishment were creating in the lobby. The door closed and locked behind him as he met the dark silence. _Naruto must be in town._ He was slightly surprised, only because Naruto had been growing progressively unnerved by the lack of hatred. He had gone from constant glares to nothing but smiles, it was impossible to adapt as quickly as one day. It was like if a plane landed by descending in an abrupt manner: from horizontal straight to vertical.

Kyuu began to trek toward the kitchen, shedding his clothes along the way. Why would he need to wear them inside? One by one the articles of clothing dropped until he stood in stark naked with a glass in hand, rummaging through the refrigerator. He turned to the counter, placing down his cup, to pour the orange juice. After returning the orange juice to it's proper place he grabbed his glass and began making his way to the living room. He was in mid step when a Chakra suddenly exploded in the middle of the floor. _Naruto's_ Chakra. His hand had jerked (the same as his body) and the orange juice sloshed over the edge onto the ground. He placed the half filled cup on the counter as he rushed over to Naruto, completely disregarding the juice dripping down his legs.

"Naruto! What's wrong? Why'd--" His voice abruptly halted as he stared at the man laying on the floor. His gaze wouldn't focus; he looked at Naruto, then Itachi, then Naruto, then Itachi. It was like a never ending circle. "What? I thought—wait—no isn't..?" His mind seemed to scramble and fog as meaningless words tumbled from his mouth.

"Kyuu, can you help me? We have to clean his wounds and--"

"What is he doing here?" His mind had finally cleared enough for a sentenced to formed. That boy, man, it didn't really matter, Kyuubi was confused, but at the same time completely understanding. His initial thought was hate, this man had tried to kill Naruto, so many times, and, not even in relation to Naruto, was dangerous. His second thought had consisted of a myriad of questions centered on "why his he on the floor?" Though the answer was obvious on closer inspection; his irregular breathing, his slightly pink face, the strain in his profile, he seemed to have a fever of some sort, as well as an abundance of pain. Aside from these observations Kyuu could feel nothing more than the utmost loathing for this seemingly defenseless man. His nails grew sharper, his eyes narrowed and darkened, his canines became defined and his demonic aura pressed upon the room.

"Stop it, Kyuu." Naruto had risen from the ground to stare Kyuu in the eyes and challenge him. It was an odd action; much more mature.

"He's trying to kill you! How can you tell me to 'stop it' when the moment he has the chance he'll stab you in the back! Don't you understand? He can't be trusted!" His voice was jagged and powerful, the bravest man would cower at his feet with no other option but to curl into fetal position and cry.

"You don't know that." Naruto had shuddered at the intensity of the room, his confidence slightly withered though he still tried to stand strong.

"I do. People won't ever change. He won't ever be on your side, even if you save him." He spared a glance a Itachi, who seemed to be doing worse as the atmosphere grew heavier.

"I realize people don't change." Kyuu's eyes widened at this. What had Naruto planned on gaining from this then? Why place himself in so much danger? The aura dispersed. "I-I realize that people won't ever change..." the words were spoken slower; he was stalling, preparing his next words. "I-I just want to believe that maybe we just never knew him. I mean, Kyuu, I never knew you were as nice as you are..." Kyuu scoffed at 'nice.' "He may be different too. Maybe he was never bad to begin with."

His head was held up to meet Kyuu's eyes, "Kyuu, why aren't you wearing any clothes?" He followed his immediate reaction and turned; twice as embarrassed as he realized that Kyuu had been naked to whole time.

"No, Naruto. We can't trust him in the slightest. Any slip-up from us could put you in danger." A frown grew on his face, "Naruto—Naru—Naruto are you listening to me?"

"No." Kyuu's eyebrows creased in and irritated confusion. "And I won't start until you put on some clothing." Kyuu could almost see the pout on Naruto's face as he crossed his arms. After a moment, Naruto bent down to check on Itachi, completely ignoring Kyuu.

A vexed scowl passed upon his countenance. Spinning on his heel, Kyuu swept up his boxers and quickly stepped into them. "There," he spoke with a pout in his voice. Naruto gave him a glance over his shoulder and nodded for Kyuu to continue. "We aren't housing _this_ criminal. We can't take the chance." His eyes were sternly focused on Naruto, who had begun to strip Itachi of his sopping clothes.

"Why? We can take precautions, can't we?" Simple and sweet. That's how everything seemed to be to him. Naruto had made his way to the bathroom to retrieve bandages and ointment.

"Naruto, nothing is that simple. What do you plan to do if he can get you alone, you'd be easy prey." Naruto protested at 'prey,' but was otherwise quite. "Or if someone finds out; you do realize that in those circumstances we'd be found out and shunned, if not killed on spot? Not that they could kill me, but you—you make me worry, Naruto."

"We can easily solve all those problems: you stick to me like a covalent bond." Naruto had managed to perch Itachi into a semi-sitting position and began wrapping the bandages with a terrible trouble. He could feel the disbelieving eyes on him, "Or we can seal his Chakra--"

"You mean _I_ could seal his Chakra." Kyuu interjected.

"Yeah, yeah. Or _I_ could seal his Chakra-" He didn't even flinted from the glare, "-I could fight him off well enough. And we won't make any friends who may possibly find out about him, and we'll keep a low profile. I mean, what is the chance that they even know who he is?"

Kyuu's eye twitched. "As crazy as that is, it may actually be a legitimate point... there are millions missing ninja, people don't usually memorize each face..." He began mumbling, dissecting the idea; looking for flaws, as Naruto tried to successfully wrap the bandages. The wraps were loose and falling off before he could complete the knot. And some point the low hum of words had withered away and Kyuu was left to watch Naruto struggle. He seemed so determined though failing was all he seemed to accomplish.

The plan... It may work, if fate was on their side, but that left too large of an unsure gap. They would be prepared for only one path out of millions, and their probability of getting caught was probably, at the least, eighty percent. But Naruto, with his determined eyes, would always accomplish the impossible.

"Alright." The word regrettably fell from his tongue before he had time to think. Naruto froze for a moment, in disbelief, before flashing a brilliant smile and setting back to work. Shutting his gold eyes he began to inwardly rebuke his soft spot, but opened them to focus on Naruto once again. A moments hesitation, he stepped forward to hold Itachi up as Naruto wrapped the long bandage. "If he hurts you Naruto," his voice was steady though his head was down, "I'll kill him." It was an unarguable statement; a deal that would settle his nerves for the time being.

A moment of silence, as if Naruto wasn't sure, though he was positive; if something happened to him he would be cursing Itachi as well, but he couldn't deny the majority of disgust would be focused on himself (for trusting so easily.) "I have no complaints." He just hoped nothing of the sort would happen.

* * *

$Ka-ching$-$Ka-ching$

* * *

(Money In Da Bank)

* * *

"Maaaaa," his tan eyelids drifted closed as he fanned his face again. "Why did it suddenly have to get so hot?" He slouched back into the white cushioned couch and draped and arm over it's back while fanning himself with the makeshift fan. He was sporting a light orange, slightly over sized, wife beater and a pair of navy blue boxers designed with small light blue swirls. Reaching with his unoccupied hand he pulled up one strap and sighed to disperse the silent reply.

Peeling his left eye open he took a quick glance at Kyuu, who was scurrying around the kitchen making some dish or other. His right eye opened as well when he turned his head to watch the half dressed, humanoid demon rummage through the refrigerator. "Hey Kyuu," the shuffle of foods wasn't his preferred response, "Kyuu," The word wasn't remarkably stern, in fact it was lackadaisical and a tad humored, "Kyuuu," the word hung in the air in a slightly falsetto voice. "Kyuu. Kyuu. Kyuu. Kyuuuuu..."

Kyuu's golden eyes spared a fleeting look at Naruto, only to realize the subtle power struggle here. If he were to answer, and shut Naru up, he would lose... but if nothing was done Naruto would never stop, and the blasphemy would drift on forever. "Kyuu. Kyuu. Kyuu. Kyuu..." The strand 'Kyuu's had adopted an unidentified tune as Naruto had adopted a smug smirk.

He turned his head quickly and began chopping a carrot hoping to drown out the mind-numbing 'music.' The endless irreverence faded as his head began to clear—"Kyuu!" If he had any less pride, he would have jumped at the screech. He turned, calmly, around to give an irritated growl at the boy standing (now) behind him who immediately began his song anew.

"For the love of—" Kyuu had turned but the lyrical word repeated again and again within his head, "What?!" The victorious smile on Naru's face made him regret his response.

Kyuu's eye twitched as it trailed Naruto, who flashing his goofy grin about as one would a trophy on his walk back to the couch, peevishly awaiting his answer. As the time passed the tension seemed to gradually dwindle away and Kyuu went back to chopping the carrots. "How do you know how to cook?"

"Why do you wanna know?" The melodic rhythm of the knife came to a stop as he turned to face the living room.

"Well, it's just..." His mouth opened occasionally but would close soon after, until, "I don't know. I just think it's funny 'cuz you're a demon an all." His forefinger met his chin in wonder, "Don't you just eat everything raw? Why would you need to cook?" He questioned as he rested his elbow on the back of the couch.

"Eating _everything_ raw becomes kind of bland after thousands of years. It's like trying a new food, and I don't particularly love raw meat... too bloody. The blood gets _everywhere_; like glitter." Naruto watched Kyuu visible shiver. "And it's not like it's very hard to cook, just use a recipe... and follow it." A glance over his shoulder, "It's so easy even _you_ could do it."

"Hey... that sounds like an insult." A good-humored frown graced his mouth before silence engulfed them.

Kyuu continued chopping vegetables as Naruto simply collapsed back first onto the couch grabbing the discarded fan that lay on the floor. With a grunt of discomfort he reached for the blanket bundled between himself and the cushions and promptly threw it to the floor. This (the couch) had been his sleeping quarters for approximately three weeks (hence the blanket,) since another occupied his bed.

His worried blue eyes had found their way to 'his' bedroom door. After bandaging Itachi they had encountered a dilemma: where to put him. Kyuu had been outraged at the proposal to place the limp body in his room, he clammed that Itachi was "not his problem" and he "wasn't the one who wanted to keep him." Because the only bed other than Kyuu's was Naruto's and putting him (Tachi) on the couch was out of the question since, one: it was too narrow and two: if anyone were to open the front door the cat would be forcibly removed from the bag, Itachi was given Naruto's bed.

It was true that he had solemnly agreed to the proposal, but had been under the impression that Itachi would sleep a day, at most. And yet, still he sleeps. It had been an effect of the hemorrhage; too much blood had been lost and his body had shut down. It was an unfortunate twist; unsure as to what to do; unsure where to acquire the correct doctoring.

Though it was true Tanaka was a doctor, he could only be enlightened so much. It wasn't a matter of trust, to any great extent, Naruto just feared that Tanaka wouldn't be convinced as easily as Kyuu. Not implying that Kyuu was easily manipulated, he just understood Naruto more so than Tanaka. This had left them with a patient in desperate need of a doctor/medical car; neither of those were acquirable. Regrettably they decided that if they changed his bandages frequently and 'borrowed' an IV from the hospital he would, at least survive without any major damage. The amount of anxiety weighed upon Naruto's shoulders seemed unbearable at the start, but with the weeks that passed his distress was drove away by the numbing despair. He came to a point when there wasn't really any feeling at all, though he wore an anguished face as it seemed expected from him.

A growl emerged from his stomach as his nose filled with the smell of curry and his hand, instinctively, fled (from fanning) to his tummy as if it would ease the pang of hunger. With an unsettled look, he glanced at the slightly protrude stomach. It never failed to surprise him that there was something actually growing within him. He was happy, but at the same time, he was utterly disturbed; a male pregnancy—he was an abomination, according to the human race.

But still. He smiled, before making his way to the kitchen. Why should he care?

He walked over to where Kyuu stood, fan still in hand, and began watching over the tall shoulder. "Eeeewwww," he was on his tip toes, trying in vain to rest casually upon Kyuu's shoulder. "There are vegetables," it wasn't the vegetables; he didn't hate vegetables (despite popular belief,) the words came out whiny and annoying because he felt he was obligated to react in this way. Naruto actually _liking_ vegetables? It was out of the question; it wasn't who he was. In all eyes he had to appear as the rebellious little boy he had once been; he wasn't allowed to change dramatically because he doesn't define himself.

Kyuu was silent; understanding. He sighed, because really, there was nothing else he could do.

They were both pulled from their silence by a crash of metal upon wood and a hysterical scream of distress. Naruto was the first to react, running toward the master bedroom as Kyuu lagged behind, turning off the stove and calmly walked to the room. Naruto seemed struck with fear at the scene: Itachi was sitting in the middle of the bed, wide-eyed and shaking, his right arm bleeding from where the IV was torn out but he didn't seemed concerned.

"Itachi," Naruto softened his voice trying to mimic how a nurse had once talked to Sasuke. He was answered with a string of unintelligible slurs. His eyebrow arched as he flung a questioning glance at Kyuu.

"Dysphasia. The inability to articulate any speech, it's occurs occasionally when people come out of comas. Also, he's probably in a state of confusion, so we should probably try and calm him down." A nod as his reply before Naruto began inching toward the bed. Kyuu chose to keep his distance, so Itachi wouldn't lash out in fear.

"Itachi?" The slurred mess gradually became more and more articulate as the muscles' use increased. Naruto stepped closer, trying to understand to mumbles, but he was only able to catch an occasional 'why.' He stood there, waiting as Itachi began to calm. Eventually the shivers had subsided and the murmurs had dwindled down to silence. Naruto leant forward, preparing to speak as Kyuu stepped ahead. In curiosity Naruto paced backward, to come in full view of Kyuu's hands rapidly forming signs. He clapped his hands together and placed them with perfected accuracy upon all the Chakra points. Once more he created a sign with his hands, though this time there was a pulse of energy and his arms fell dead weight at his sides.

"Why couldn't you have done that later? He just woke up!" Naruto semi-yelled in disbelief.

"I'm not going to take any chances, Naruto." The words hung in the air as he left the room.

A frown still occupied his face, though it was less intense than before; he understood Kyuu's position... he shouldn't have snapped when Kyuu was trying to protect him. He turned to Itachi, who lay motionless, again. He signed and stepped forward to place the body in a more comfortable position. Sauntering toward the door, he gave one last glance at the sleeping (he hoped) body before following his stomach to the curry.

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AN:Doesn't it sound like I know everything about comas? Thank you . XD

I'm sorry some of it seemed random; when I meet the nice Mr. Writer's Block I just ramble until I find myself back on the plot... It's worked so far...


	5. CH 4:I Need Better Titles

**So I was reading an author's profile page and they were listing pet peeves. One of them was: "I hate people who write three chapters of awesome then leave for three months...." So my reaction was: "Damn, that sounds like me, though it probably isn't... I feel bad now... Maybe I should update." So I have a request, and a question.**

**Request: stop making me feel bad... makes me cry...**

**Question: is my story awesome enough that I should periodically update with a note if I'm not going to update the actually story for a while? Basically: Do I equal awesome? (Bow down fools!)**

**Disclaimer: self explanatory.

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**

Chapter 4

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The hollow cricket symphony that dully played faded abruptly into oblivion as the noisy rustle of blankets filled the room. It had been a relatively peaceful night, albeit humid, as the light snores of sleep echoed in the quiet apartment. The silver moonlight stretched through the window, grabbing the pale face out of its slumber, and only moments after the porcelain slowly cracked open ever so slightly.

It was a new feeling, being so aware of his surroundings, as his eyes strained to see clearly. He took a couple, slow, patient blinks only to stare blankly at the prosaic ceiling for a good ten minutes and, as if hitting him at the speed of light, realized he wasn't dead. He couldn't help the glare that formed on his face, or the fierce jerking of his arm that tore the blankets from his body and the IV from his arm, or the weak stomps as he hoisted himself from the bed, and, though the next instant he had fallen back to the mattress, his anger pulsated through his veins. With a bitter surge of power he stood once more, grabbing the head of the bed frame to balance himself, and began, meekly to make his way out of the room.

As he marched an uncomfortable heat spread across his skin yet he continued to slug each step heavily toward the open door. His ears began to ring and his vision was filled with spots. The crickets' songs wavered as his consciousness swayed and mind became dizzy and he felt his awareness swiftly fail him and, with refined, yet dulled, reflexes, his hand shot out to brace himself on the wall. He was heavily leaning on his forearms when an astonished look overtook his usually stoic countenance.

His labored breathes obscured the crickets' song yet again as his black eyes grew wide and his placid mouth had formed a deep frown. This wasn't him. Not as he defined himself, anyway. He had always been proud that he was about to control his temper through any circumstance; any mishap, and yet here he was, gallivanting off on a whim; a trait much more akin to Sasuke than it ever was to him. He had always been the pride of the family; matured at eight [perhaps even before that,] always choosing work over play, and yet succeed without even trying. And, by definition of Uchia Itachi, he was to suppress all feelings, all love, all happiness, all shame, all longing, all irritation, all hate. He wasn't permitted to feel, as his brother was, he didn't allow himself to. And it shamed himself to be so impulsive, it was truly a pitiful, pitiful thing.

He took a breath, to calm his nerves, and his hands fell into place at his sides as he straightened, disregarding the pain, his back to take an analyzed step forward. His legs found new, structured, strength (though they were by no means strong) as he took each step into the open room.

The room was lit delicately with the evanescent moonlight, each feature had a gray tint to it's surface giving an eerie yet peaceful glow. The yonder window did little than allow the light passage into the room, yet the faint fireflies darting across the grassy stretch was not overlooked by his distant eyes. It was a guilty pleasure, he supposed, his secret admiration for stupid forms of romantic beauty, and had he been less of "himself" perhaps a content smile might have graced his colorless lips. But, as he gazed with an uninterested gaze out the window, he was fully conscious of who he was; where he was; and what his self proclaimed mission was—he was no where near content. He took as strong a step forward as he could, his dark eyes venomously focusing on the haphazard figure carelessly draped atop the plush couch.

Was it immature of him to hate this _thing_? It was true he was unconscious during his "saving" but the signs were there, it was obvious what happened; what this stupid fuck did. Playing hero all by his lonesome self. Nobody asked him to be "noble," and as far as Itachi could see the only reason to save someone was for your own personal high. The adrenaline from knowing he made it just in time; the pure, natural high. It was a disgusting. He stopped for a second, watching the steady breathes of the boy, and subconsciously noted the protruded belly, though it was only slight. _Or maybe he just thinks he earn eternal gratitude?_ _People don't function for anything other than personal benefit; we are all the centers of our own little worlds and nobody, nobody, is more important. To do something selfless is impossible, whether it be directly or indirectly, and so,_ he supposed at the thought, _all actions are defined be intentions. _

_What the Kyuubi vessel intended is unknown._ It was a simple thought that probably should have been further investigated, considering a life was bent on the ambiguity of the statement [regardless of the fact that human lives are not as valuable as common belief presents them.] And, being the efficient assassin was, it was no surprise that a nagging voice was whispering that he was working purely on emotion rather than his usual methodical self, but his anger overwhelmed the nagging murmur as he assured his actions with a dismissive:

_Does it matter?_ A shaking hand reached forward to grasp the child's throat and with all the strength he could muster, squeezed. His flawless face scrunched up as he pushed harder and harder, clutching onto the boy's neck, and yet each push seemed weaker than the rest. His previously inactive muscles contracted with nearly no strength at all, and at some point during his futile efforts he had realized that the vessel hadn't even been fazed. Naruto's eyelids were still peacefully shut, and though his breathes were slightly irregular he still was sound asleep.

Itachi's black eyes gave a helpless look at his victim as his anger to shifted to a confusion. He felt like a mess, like Murphy's Law had invaded his life and promptly infected everything. He had had his life planned out perfectly since the day he was thirteen, perhaps even before that, and he had [though at some points unwillingly] accepted the life—death—he chosen, and now, with a beating heart after the fact he was left in the midst of confusion. His eyes were shut, his hand still loosely wrapped around the tanned neck, and his muddled mind still spinning.

It was stupid, and he knew it, being so lost and so emotional wasn't part of his plan, and yet he couldn't help but not really mind. It was an odd sensation, having surges of feelings. It was like with each new emotion his body was purged of the heavy darkness that he had adopted; that he had set upon himself and for a moment he wondered why he had proscribed this wondrous sensation. His whole life was lived as a machine: killing, studying, exacting his power, and truthfully, eating, sleeping or any humanistic quality in general was forebode. And, yet, here he was with feelings flowing through the dams he had built, and, though it seemed impossible to define, it was—dare it be said—pleasant to feel, no matter how lost his feelings were.

"I-Itachi?" It was a mouse-like voice, and nearly sent Itachi into a state of shock as he opened his eyes and realized that the Kyuubi vessel was the source. Naruto was still sprawled on the couch with Itachi's hand round his throat, but regardless of the threatening hand his face was filled with concern. On his left cheek were a few drops of water that had begun sliding down the side of his face. Quickly Itachi recoiled to wipe his eyes—he hadn't realized his crying state—and hastily sobered. "A-are you okay?" Naruto spoke, after sitting up, with a calming voice though the awkward fear was evident in his words and darting eyes.

Itachi didn't reply as he stood, facing away, at the edge of the couch. Naruto just sat, gazing uncertainly and let the silence grow, but with each passing moment Naruto began culturing the courage to disrupt the steady quiet. His tanned hand slowly outstretched as he crawled down the couch, closer to Itachi and nervously stood up. Itachi turned to face the boy. His eyes were hollow—his face in general was emotionless as he opened his mouth, "What do you want Kyuubi vessel?" His voice didn't contain any hint of anger, it was robotic, and Naruto was scared.

His heart thumping as he saw Itachi's lifeless eyes, and each moment the beating increased as images of his death shot through his mind. He was afraid there was no denying that. This man wasn't human and could—would—kill him without batting an eye. It wasn't that he was afraid to die—he'd been ready the day he accepted his headband—it was fear for his baby, and maybe, perhaps fear that Itachi was too much a doll to be saved. His blue eyes gazed with freight into the dull black ones, minutes passed as they continued to stare until—

Itachi's eyes shot wide open as Naruto lurched forward as wrapped his arms around the taller man's torso. His arms squeezed around Itachi as he buried his face into the man's chest in fear, repeatedly rebuking his impulsive actions. A moment passed as the shock settled in, "What. The. Fuck." Itachi's words were irritated and venomous, yet weren't yelled, as he forcefully pushed the teen to the floor. His heart—deniably—beat erratically after being in such an affectionate position.

"Hey," Naruto whispered in a barely peeved tone and rubbing his sore back, "that hurt." His eyes slowly lifted to look at Itachi's face, his breathes still labored from fear and his heart still racing. He had been scared while throwing a hug at the man, and, most truly, he wasn't even sure of the outcome he had tried to obtain, though the show of hatred lightened his spirit incredibly.

Itachi's glare, still boring into Naruto's head, stayed fixed on the lad as he slowly regained his balance and stood. And yet, as angry as he was, he couldn't help but wonder what had possessed the Kyuubi vessel to do something so stupid. Naruto gave a stern look, successfully hiding the slight fear that resided, as he began answering Itachi's curiosity. "You looked like you needed a hug." The statement was accompanied by a shrug before he swallowed his nervousness and sent a glare at the missing-nin. In actuality, it really did piss Naruto off, "You're so ungrateful. I try and do something nice..." the rest of the words were a string of unarticulated mock anger.

Itachi was more than a little confused under his composed exterior as he watched the Kyuubi vessel walk past him, marching into what looked like the bathroom. The sound of drawers and cabinets opening and closing echoed into Itachi's ears as he blankly watched the bathroom door. There were a few more rustles before Naruto emerged and stalked over to Itachi, still muttering angrily under his breath. He shot out a hand to grab Itachi's right arm and began bandaging the bleeding wound.

"When did I get..." Itachi hadn't really meant to say the words out loud and was some what appalled he had.

"You probably tore out the IV," he gave a knowing look, "again." There was a delicate frown on his lips, and his little fears seemed to vanish with the vulnerability of Itachi's perplexed expression—he probably didn't even know he was making it. "You are way too much trouble for how much you're worth." It was said in a teasing tone, and Itachi responded with dismay. Was the boy completely mental? Itachi was quite sure _why_ this disturbed him so much, though he supposed that it was more or less this boy was acting so friendly. It was a foreign concept, having someone who seemed to care, and it was strange especially since he was the Kyuubi vessel's enemy. Or maybe that wasn't the reason it disturbed him so, maybe it was the fact that no one was supposed to care for him. He was evil, he was cruel, he was hated—or he was supposed to be. He stopped a moment to think a bit. Maybe that wasn't it either. He inwardly gave himself a terrified look. Maybe, just maybe, he was so terribly appalled by this boy's seemingly kindness because deep down inside, he really liked it and maybe that was so hard to comprehend because he'd be the fool if all this was an act; if this was some deliberate scheme he'd be the butt of the joke.

He hadn't noticed Naruto finished the bandaging and returned the materials to the bathroom until the boy had spoken outside the room he previously occupied. "Since you're awake now, you get to sleep on the couch for the rest of the night." Naruto had retreated into the bedroom after clarifying the bedding arrangements, while Itachi stood, still silently trying to figure out what had happened since he woke up. His black eyes stared blankly where Naruto had last been when the boy came back, standing in the doorway looking a bit embarrassed, opened his mouth and said: "Good-night." and disappeared again.

A smile nearly graced his lips.

* * *

I'm really hungry but it's two in the morning and I don't wanna wake anybody up.

* * *

"You made him sleep on the couch." It was a deadpanned sentence that was promptly followed by bursts of laughter.

Itachi blinked a couple of times, trying to figure out what was going on.

"Why are you laughing?" The voice was genuinely baffled at the fit of laughter.

Itachi cautiously began hoisting himself into a seated position, though his muscles ached from sleeping on the small couch.

"Hey, look, he's awake." Both men turned to look at the uncomfortable expression on Itachi's face, though he had quickly masked it, setting his emotionless face back on. "He's probably sore as hell." The laughter continued as Kyuubi grabbed his sides and nearly fell to the ground rolling.

Ignoring Kyuubi's hyena laughter, Naruto bounced up to the back of the couch. "Hey, hey, Itachi, want something to eat?" Not a trace of fear, considering Kyuubi's presence, he gave a bright, friendly smile. Itachi only grunted and gave a glare before trying to steady himself on his feet. He stood there for a moment before taking in the situation. He was standing in a room with the previous holder of Kyuubi no Kitsune and the actual demon Kyuubi no Kitsune, and yet he wasn't dead. His Chakara seemed to be sealed, his muscles were sore as hell, and the wound on his back seemed to have reopened when he got up and overall he was completely lost. He took a calming breath, what was he supposed to do? Stay with the enemy?—though they weren't exactly the enemy anymore, since he was dead to the Akatsuki [his ring was missing, why they hadn't disposed of his body [correctly—if they even tried at all] was a mystery to him.] All he knew at the moment was his bladder was calling for the bathroom.

As he turned to the bathroom Naruto gave a semi shriek saying, "You reopened the wound!" The words came flowing out in a mixture of rage and concern as Naruto rushed over to Itachi, who was at the bathroom door. "I put so much work into bandaging it too." He gave some crocodile tears.

"Don't follow me." Itachi had turned to Naruto to say this but right after proceeded on his way when he noticed Naruto was still trailing close behind.

"Good," Kyuubi spoke with relief from his position near the couch, "You didn't get any blood anywhere."

"What the hell." Itachi was giving Naruto and annoyed look while Naruto seemed oblivious to the situation, yet at the same time giving a confused look. Kyuubi couldn't help but laugh.

"Naruto, stop being a pervet."

"What!? I'm not—oooh." He stumbled a few steps back as he realized what was going on and allowed Itachi entrance into the bathroom, alone, before turning back to Kyuu. "I'm not a pervert."

"Says the one that desperately wants to go into the bathroom with Itachi."

"I was gonna help him with his wound." A frown childishly played on his lips.

"I'm sure that's not the only thing you were going to help him with." Kyuu shot a suggestive smile, completely ignoring the lack of sense of the statement, before heading back to the kitchen to start breakfast, gracefully dodging every glare Naruto threw.

Naruto sighed, trying not to let the comments bother him as he followed Kyuu into the kitchen. Leaning on the island he watched Kyuu leisurely make his way about, and without really meaning to opened his mouth, "Need any help."

Kyuu didn't so much as spare Naruto a glance as he replied, "No, I don't really like burnt food." A frown played on Naruto's face.

"Then you should teach me how to cook."

"Why don't you get your boyfriend to?" Kyuu turned to give Naruto a wink as Naruto replied with an indignant glare.

"Just because he's hot doesn't mean I'd date him."

"Ahh, but you think he's hot."

Naruto crossed his arms and took on a cross demeanor. "I thought it was a given fact."

"Touche. But what makes you think he'd date _you_." There was a grin slapped across his face as he spoke the next words, "Though we can't assume anything. Why don't we just ask him, since he _is_ standing behind you." Kyuu smiled though he was actually quite surprised at how casual this whole predicament was turning out; it wasn't all that nerve wracking housing a criminal.

"W-what!?" A deep blush overtook Naruto's face as he quickly turned around to come face to face with an empty room. "Goddamn you, Kyuu!" He genuinely looked pissed as Kyuu half-heartedly apologized, laughing all the while, and didn't cease even when Itachi walked from the bathroom. Naruto turned at the sound of the opening door, a deep flush still painted on his cheeks as he walked toward Itachi. "Do you need help bandaging your back now?" It was a slightly embarrassed tone and Kyuu's laughter increased tenfold.

Itachi reluctantly nodded and headed back up to the bathroom. This was all too strange for his likings, and yet, to tell the truth, he liked the fact that they were allowing him under their roof, though the strangest part was he liked it even though they probably had some ulterior motive.

He was in the middle of the tile floor as Naruto went rummaging around for the bandages and ointment. His dark eyes followed the boy as he went through the cabinets and drawers, the same ones as last night he assumed, and made his way next to him and cued Itachi to take off his shirt. As Itachi proceeded to do as he was told, with a great amount of difficulty Naruto reached forward to help him. It was an awkward situation, mostly because the flush on Naruto's cheeks kept flaming, nearly making Itachi give a smirk.

Once the shirt was off the haphazard bandages were in view; loose and bloody, Naruto quickly cut them off and disposed of them. He took up a wet rag and began wiping the dried blood off Itachi's back. "How'd you get this anyway?" It was simple conversation, initiated mostly in hopes of drawing attention away from the blush that colored his cheeks.

His question was answered with silence.

"Uh-um, what's your favorite food?" Trying, in vain, to rinse the room of the awkwardness.

"I don't have one."

"Aww, that's not a good answer. Pick something you like. Anything." He had finished cleaning the wound and was happily rubbing on ointment. He gave a smile, happy that Itachi was talking at all.

"This is stupid." Naruto nearly winced at the harsh tone of the reaction. His smile melted away, giving Itachi an almost teary look through the mirror in front of them. The silence stretched in and Naruto proceeded to wrap the bandage around Itachi's torso. "Onigiri."

For a moment Naruto had thought he was hearing things when he looked up into the mirror and saw the uncomfortable look on Itachi's face and gave another bright smile. "Fuh-nay." He looked in the mirror again, "That's mine too."

One of Itachi's eyebrows rose in wonder. "I was under the impression Ramen was your favorite delicacy."

"Yeah, no." Naruto smiled again, wrapping the bandage around again in such a way that he was very nearly giving Itachi a hug. "Ramen's good but I don't think I'd call it my favorite. I mean, I don't mind eating it but sometimes it makes me feel a little sick." His nose scrunched up as he stuck out his tongue. "Especially now, in my condition, if I get near Ramen I'll have to run to the bathroom. According to Kyuu—Wait, you don't know Kyuu. Kyuu is the redheaded guy in the kitchen."

"I guessed so much."

"Kyuu is short for Kyuubi no Kitsune." Naruto paused and gave a wince, anticipating an eruption.

"I guessed so much."

"Oh." For a moment Naruto just stood there, a dumb look on his face before giving a sweet grin. "You're really smart."

"Only compared to you." In all actuality it had accidentally slipped from his mouth; it seemed an instinctive response—yet he was horrified at the the prospect of casually teasing _anyone_, much less someone who was more like a stranger than anything remotely like a friend. Naruto seemed just as stunned as he stared at Itachi through the mirror. A moments lapse he was beaming brighter than the sun.

"You, made a joke." Naruto's smile grew while Itachi was at a loss; how was he to react? Naruto, feeling his companion's uneasiness began finishing up the bandaging and tied up the ends before announcing, "Done." and threw the bandaging supplies into a drawer. "You're probably hungry, right?" And motioned to leave the bathroom.

* * *

Sasuke is missing us. Let's go visit.

* * *

It pissed him off as much as anyone might be from spending the last few weeks in the hospital—probably more. The towering purity of the walls, the nauseating as the sterile smell that thickly covered the air, the nurses flashing flirtatious smiles and thrusting out their mediocre chests, the soft echo of birds outside the window, the annoying glare of sunshine, the dozens of flowers labeled with names he never knew. All of it was sickening. And what's more, he was on suspension to heal his wounds—he wasn't allowed to work.

A deep frown marred his face as he glared at the pinkette sitting next to his bed and his eyes narrowed in a glare that, he wished, would make her disappear.

He should be happy—joyous—enthralled—ecstatic, not moping about hating the world, even if he genuinely felt it was impossible to crack a humored smirk [like he once could] when his heart was filled with empty fulfillment. And what ired him most was the fact that he didn't know _why_.

Approximately three weeks ago he had been sent on a mission, a mission that changed his life for the better. Upon his return he walked into Konoha on the brink of song and dance [and fainting, from blood loss which probably explains his intoxicated-like thoughts of song and dance] with the brightest grin anyone had ever seen on an Uchiha. His blithe disposition granted him the insanity to disregard proper procedure and headed home instead of reporting directly to the Hokage [or the hospital, in his state.]

The frown deepened on his face. What _had_ he expected once arriving home? It was a simple question; he knew the answer, of course, though would rather forgive his brother than ever speak it aloud. He had even thought it out. If someone were to ask he would casually respond that he hadn't intending to see a radiant smile as blinding as the sun—one only achieved by Naruto, because that would have implied that he missed the dope. And he most definitely didn't want to hug the boy after encountering the welcoming smile because that would have implied that one: he would loved the dope, and two: he had emotions other than hatred. No, wanting to see Naruto was implausible implication. It was even less plausible that the childish frown was an act of missing the blond.

He gave another hard glare at the pinkette as she nearly shrank back but instead outstretched her arms offering food. At first he gave the offering a suspicious look before angrily grabbing a slice of the perfectly cut apple and continued to brood; he'd been played a fool by none other than himself.

"Sasuke..." Her light voice caused him to lift his head. "This might not be the right time," she set the plate of apple on the side table as she tried to suppress her nervous guilt, "but," and she just stopped. Her heart was racing as she stood and took a step back, instinctively out of his arm span, her body was racked with tremors.

"Just spit it out." _bitch_. His dark eyes hardened as her body shook a bit more violently.

"I'm pregnant." The words had shot out immediately after his request in a very obedient manner, and she dropped her head in the shame that kept eating her.

He had imagined, for all these years, that the moment those words feel to his ears he would be on top of the world. He'd be able to check off another goal and get on with his life, yet in the moment, after hearing the words he wasn't sure how to feel.

He nodded in acceptance and she gave a smile of relief before plopping down in the seat again. The squeezing at his heart both unwelcome and ignored.

* * *

Well it feels good to have finally finished the chapter.

OBJECTION! So, you know what I noticed? Well, I'm not gonna tell you, but there's a _contradiction _with my plot and I bet you can't guess what it is. Though I don't blame you since might not even get what's going on. But if you do, you should present _evidence_. (lol. PHOENIX WRIGHT FTW!)

Anyway, happy my birthday. You get a present. Love it, cherish it, hold it close to your heart [preferably squished into your breasts if you have them] and think of me. (Please don't actually do that, if you did I'd be scared.)


End file.
